# Álvaro González (footballer, born 1984)

Álvaro Rafael González Luengo (Spanish pronunciation:; born 29 October 1984), nicknamed "Tata" is a former Uruguayan professional footballer who played as a midfielder. A Uruguayan international on 72 occasions since 2006, he represented his nation for one World Cup and three Copa América tournaments.

## Club career
### Defensor

González started his career in 2003 with Defensor Sporting Club in Uruguay. He represented the side until 2007, playing 122 games with 8 goals in all competitions.

### Boca Juniors

In August 2007, he was transferred to the giant club Boca Juniors. In the Argentine team he played until 2009 scoring one goal against Vélez Sarsfield and winning the 2008 Apertura and the 2008 Recopa Sudamericana.

### Nacional

In 2009, he returned to Uruguay but now playing for Nacional.

### Lazio

In August 2010, he signed a three-year contract with Italian club Lazio. He made his Serie A debut on 22 September 2010 against Fiorentina. Álvaro González scored his first Serie A goal vs Brescia and celebrated his goal by mimicking a phone call back to Uruguay by taking out his right boot.
The 2012–13 season saw González as a protagonist in Lazio coach Petković's eyes, where he had been among the most consistent and played players. Petković played González in numerous roles in the 2012–13 season, from defensive midfielder to full back and right midfielder. Together with the national team, Álvaro González played over 50 games in the 2012–13 season proving his durability, consistency and also goal scoring where he managed to get on the scoresheet in Serie A, Coppa Italia and in the Europa League.

#### Loan to Torino

On 1 February 2015, Torino announced the signing of González on a six-month loan with a buyout clause.

#### Loan to Atlas

On 21 August 2015, Mexican side Atlas announced the signing of González on a full year loan with a buyout clause.

## International career

González has won 49 caps for the Uruguay national football team. His debut for La Celeste came against Romania in May 2006.
After playing for the team during 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying, he was omitted from the squad which went on the finish fourth in the tournament finals.
In 2011, he won the Copa América playing four matches, including the final against Paraguay. He went on to represent his country at the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup, and made 12 appearances during the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign.
On 2 June 2014, he was named in Uruguay's squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup finals. He appeared as a second-half substitute in the team's opening match – a 3–1 defeat to Costa Rica in Fortaleza.

## Career statistics
### Club

Statistics accurate as of match played 1 October 2019.
| Club | Season | League | League | Cup | Cup | CONMEBOL / UEFA | CONMEBOL / UEFA | Other | Other | Total | Total |
| Club | Season | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Boca Juniors | 2007–08 | 13 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 19 | 2 |
| Boca Juniors | 2008–09 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 1 |
| Boca Juniors | Total Boca Juniors | 33 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 44 | 3 |
| Nacional | 2009–10 | 15 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 2 |
| S.S. Lazio | 2010–11 | 19 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 2 |
| S.S. Lazio | 2011–12 | 31 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 40 | 1 |
| S.S. Lazio | 2012–13 | 34 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 49 | 3 |
| S.S. Lazio | 2013–14 | 25 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30 | 1 |
| S.S. Lazio | 2014–15 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| S.S. Lazio | Total S.S. Lazio | 113 | 4 | 11 | 2 | 22 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 146 | 7 |
| Torino (loan) | 2014–15 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| Atlas (loan) | 2015–16 | 16 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 0 |
| Nacional | 2017 | 20 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 2 |
| Nacional | 2018 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 0 |
| Nacional | Total Nacional | 29 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 40 | 2 |
| Defensor Sporting | 2019 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 |
| Career total | Career total | 217 | 9 | 14 | 2 | 54 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 297 | 18 |

### International

    Source:
Appearances and goals by national team and year :
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
| Uruguay | 2006 | 3 | 0 |
| Uruguay | 2007 | 3 | 0 |
| Uruguay | 2008 | 4 | 0 |
| Uruguay | 2009 | 1 | 0 |
| Uruguay | 2010 | 1 | 0 |
| Uruguay | 2011 | 10 | 1 |
| Uruguay | 2012 | 8 | 0 |
| Uruguay | 2013 | 11 | 1 |
| Uruguay | 2014 | 8 | 1 |
| Uruguay | 2015 | 11 | 0 |
| Uruguay | 2016 | 7 | 0 |
| Uruguay | 2017 | 5 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 72 | 3 |

### International goals

| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
| 1 | 2 September 2011 | Metalist Oblast Sports Complex, Kharkiv, Ukraine | Ukraine | 1–1 | 2–3 (W) | Friendly |
| 2 | 14 August 2013 | Miyagi Stadium, Rifu, Japan | Japan | 4–1 | 4–2 (W) | Friendly |
| 3 | 18 November 2014 | Estadio Monumental David Arellano, Santiago, Chile | Chile | 2–1 | 2–1 (W) | Friendly |

## Honours
### Club
#### Boca Juniors

* Primera División: 2008 Apertura
* Recopa Sudamericana: 2008

#### Lazio

* Coppa Italia: 2012–13

### International
#### Uruguay

* 2011 Copa América: Winner